Chapter 87: Chapter 82: Awakening, New Soldiers Take the Field, Devouring Assimilation

Risk and reward always go hand in hand.

This is especially true in the process of natural evolution.

The Physical Enhancement Superpower only boosts one’s physique by 10% in the Early Stage, offering a very low return. Therefore, its Awakening process involves almost no risk.

This Superpower originates from the stimulation of adrenaline within the body. Aside from a period of weakness after use, it has no other drawbacks. It isn’t like exhausting one’s Spiritual Power, which leaves a person mentally drained and utterly exhausted, requiring at least a long, deep sleep to recover.

That’s why this Superpower is the one most Awakeners end up with. While it’s weak in the early stages, it allows them to safely pass the trial of the Awakening phase.

At the same time, at Tier One Late Stage, it grants a 30% boost to physique. With a base physique of 150 points, this provides a considerable and rapid increase.

Compared to other, stranger abilities, it wasn’t weak at all.

Right now, Lin Feng looked at the eight Awakeners before him, all sixteen or seventeen years old. Six of them had the Physical Enhancement Superpower, and so they had completed their Superpower Awakening within an hour.

The entire process was exceptionally smooth, with no pain or danger.

The six of them got up and went to the adjacent rooms to wash away the impurities and filth from their bodies. When they returned, some had faces full of joy at their gains, while others showed a flash of lonely disappointment.

In Lin Feng’s view, although Physical Enhancement was indeed weak in the early stages, the ability would grow stronger and stronger in the later stages as their base stats increased.

As long as they could break through to Tier Two, it was bound to unleash an extra 50% burst of power, which would already be more effective than most Superpowers.

Lin Feng sat on the sofa and shared his thoughts on Physical Enhancement with the group, offering a few words of encouragement.

He then turned his gaze to the two people behind him who were still unconscious.

They were Shen Jie and Zhang Liying, the leaders of this group of eight.

A longer Awakening process meant greater risk.

It either meant the Superpower they were awakening was too powerful, or that they were currently unable to withstand the power of the Awakening, just like Jiang Yun’er.

As time ticked by, the two before him had already been unconscious for an hour and a half, which was longer than most Awakening processes.

Unfortunately, Lin Feng couldn’t find any clues. Using his Identification Skill only showed that they were ’In Awakening,’ with no other notifications. He couldn’t sense any fluctuations of Spiritual Energy either.

Perhaps if Ding Chenghai and the others were here, they would have a way to handle it. But Lin Feng was clueless. He could only ask the six who had already awakened to find some wet towels and give them to the feverish Shen Jie and Zhang Liying for physical cooling.

’I hope they can make it through this.’

Lin Feng sighed softly and pulled out his ringing phone. It was a call from Qin Hu.

After answering, he learned that Qin Hu had personally delivered the remaining seventy pairs of Giant Mandibles, along with the equipment for the outpost.

Lin Feng instructed a few of the others to stay by Shen Jie’s side, then got up and left the hotel. Outside the building, he saw several military trucks parked next to the outpost.

It was nearly dusk, and the service area was dim.

Forty or fifty soldiers were unloading cargo.

In addition to the protective netting, weapon mounts, and auxiliary equipment like binoculars being carried down, there were also dozens of Heavy Machine Guns and several Machine Cannons.

These were all weapons allocated to the outpost.

When Qin Hu saw Lin Feng appear, he led him to an empty corner and said:

"The seventy pairs of Giant Mandibles have been delivered to the repair shop. Your woman is inspecting them now. As for the high-energy bombs you needed, I only managed to get one case of TNT, about thirty kilograms."

Lin Feng nodded. He had already used ten kilograms last time to complete the diversionary mission for Cheng Zhan. With the amount Qin Hu just brought, he now had a total of one hundred twenty kilograms.

It should be more than enough to deal with the several thousand Black Spine Zergs in the upcoming defensive battle.

However, when he saw there were only five Machine Cannons, and that they were the smallest thirty-millimeter caliber, he said with some displeasure:

"Is this all the firepower allocated to the outpost?"

Qin Hu coughed lightly and explained helplessly:

"The main heavy weapons have all been deployed to the main battlefield. We never planned to set up a flanking defense line here in the first place. Plus, we can’t link up for support. The three Machine Cannons on your vehicle are also included in the count, so eight isn’t a small number."

"So..."

Lin Feng’s brow furrowed slightly.

"So this place was a sacrificial pawn from the very beginning?"

Qin Hu gave a noncommittal response, but still offered some comfort:

"If you can’t hold it, just run. Even if this place is breached, the Zerg Race will still have to face the defensive lines inside Wu City. No one will blame you for retreating without authorization."

"Besides, the Zerg Race won’t commit too many forces here. The Mother Empress isn’t stupid; she has no need to gnaw on such a worthless bone."

"Your mission is to provide flank support, not to block the main Zerg army."

Lin Feng shrugged and didn’t ask any more questions.

The less faith both sides had in this position, the more advantageous it was for him. When the time came, whether it was launching a surprise attack or retreating when things looked bad, he could act as the situation dictated.

With the official business concluded, it was time for their private matters.

This was also the reason why Qin Hu had sought out Lin Feng to talk in person.

After lighting a cigarette for himself, Qin Hu asked:

"The first batch of rookies will be sent to the front lines tomorrow. Are you ready on your end?"

Lin Feng nodded. As long as he had people on other battlefields drawing the enemy’s attention and tying down the entire Swarm, he could go all out. Hunting seventy or eighty Black Spine Zergs a day would be a piece of cake.

"No problem. How many people will there be, approximately?"

Qin Hu took a deep breath. "Around eight hundred, divided into eight companies. Each company will be equipped with three armored vehicles and three Machine Cannons. As long as they don’t attract hundreds or thousands of Black Spine Zergs, there shouldn’t be any major safety issues."

Lin Feng nodded. The firepower was sufficient, but it was a pity that new recruits panicked easily. ’Hopefully, they can help tie down the enemy for me for a little while longer,’ he thought.

"Alright. As long as they reach the edge of the Zerg’s expansion and engage the Red-Armored Beetles, we’ll lure out the Black Spine Zerg patrols on our end."

"Don’t worry. Right now, the Zerg Race has more than just one group of Black Spine Zergs stationed on this highway. There are definitely hundreds more mobile units hidden behind them. The moment I go in, they’ll be ready to attack."

"Just have plenty of shells ready. We have to kill them from a distance to get more Awakened Energy."

"We’re talking about a whole mountain of bugs. You’re saying advancing to Tier One Late Stage in a single day will be a cinch?"

Qin Hu stamped out his cigarette and patted Lin Feng’s shoulder.

"Alright, we’ll be counting on you then. I’ll just bring Li Ran to drive. The fewer people who know about this, the better."

Lin Feng nodded solemnly. If Qin Hu could gain control of the Awakened Camp, it would help him a great deal in the future.

If the battle for Wu City was lost, Jin City would fall soon after. The remnants of their defeated army, having lost contact with high command, would be no different from warlords in a chaotic era.

If the government abandoned the few states in the Jiangnan region, then in the fallen territories, whoever had men and guns would be the boss.

And before that happened, the higher Qin Hu climbed, the more support he could naturally provide to Lin Feng.

It wasn’t that Lin Feng was hoping for humanity to suffer a crushing defeat; it was just the reality of the situation. This was a very real problem, and what Lin Feng needed was to plan ahead.

After receiving Lin Feng’s promise, Qin Hu left, full of confidence and expectation. Lin Feng’s gaze flickered. He stood there for a moment before returning to the hotel.

Shen Jie and Zhang Liying’s Awakening was still in progress. Nearly three hours had passed since it began, and their physical stamina was about to reach its limit.

Lin Feng had the other six mix mineral water with white sugar for them to drink, to replenish their energy and fluids.

Finally, at around eight o’clock in the evening, the two of them completed their Superpower Awakening.

Lin Feng looked up at the weakened Shen Jie:

「Shen Jie, lv10/19」

「Life Value 60, Physique 60, Spirit 58」

「Superpower Awakening: Devouring Assimilation (Gain part of another creature’s abilities by devouring its tissue)」